Warrior Maidens
by thecloudsarepretty
Summary: Hyppolyta/Artemis Pairing. Set in the Wonder Woman 2009 animated film.
1. Chapter 1

All rights to the Wonder Woman animated movie and characters belong to DC and Warner Brothers.

Time had become immeasurable to the Amazon tribe as they lived their lives in peace away from man's world; but for one among them the years ticked by in excruciating slowness, filled with want and desire for a beauty that she considered so high above herself, she would gladly give her life away if only asked. She would give anything, if only asked.

Artemis sighed softly while dodging another swing from a deftly handled staff. The ache in her chest had yet to dull even the slightest and she had yet to do anything about it. "I have only myself to blame", she thought to herself while looking at the beautiful, concentrating visage of her raven haired opponent. She dropped to the ground and swept her legs underneath an already jumping Queen Hippolyta. Here the gods had granted her a golden opportunity to be with the one she loves. It was an opportunity that she has been foolishly wasting. When does patience turn into laziness of will? Or is it simply fear?

She quickly returned to her feet, using her own staff as support while jumping to dodge a mid-section kick. She used this dodging move as a platform into a more aggressive head-level kick of her own. Hippolyta's form turned into a graceful swirl of clothing and skin as she evaded by leaping into a back hand-spring.

Artemis wouldn't be able to bare it if those gorgeous blue eyes, which were currently scanning for another opening, were to look at her in disgust if her confession were denied. Not to mention their professional relationship and friendship would be shot. She is after all the queen's right hand woman, a position of great importance to her. Was it worth risking the loss of that precious trust?

"You are not getting tired yet are you, Artemis?" staves clashed. "Not at all my queen, why do you ask?" Hippolyta twirled her staff in front of her, blocking a staff thrust to her shoulder first and then another to her thigh. "Because normally, I wouldn't be able to get past you with this" knocking Artemis' staff to the side with her own, the dark haired woman closed the distance and placed one of her own legs between the red-head's while grabbing her wrist and effectively tossing her partially over her shoulder and onto the ground. Green eyes looked up in shock while blue eyes sparkled with placid amusement.

"Wow mother, I didn't know you still had it in you." Both women turned to the newcomer. They wore identical surprised expressions after seeing who it was. Hippolyta's shifted into a smile while Artemis' blended into her usual impassive expression. The queen offered her hand to the redheaded woman, which Artemis took. Her heart fluttered as their fingers brushed delicately against each other's palms.

"Diana, what are you doing home so soon? Is everything all right?" Diana's amused smile turned sheepish. "Well, you did tell me to visit often" A slight pause "And… Steve and I broke up", the princess said sadly while looking down. The Queen walked over and gave her daughter a warm hug. "Let's go inside and you can tell us all about it". Hippolyta placed a hand on her daughter's shoulder and guided her towards the palace while Artemis followed closely behind.

"We were having an argument about that Candy woman who works in Steve's office. I left to clear my head for a few hours and when I came back he was gone." Sadness creased her brow. "I haven't seen or heard from him since." She let out a frustrated growl "Grrr! Men are so infuriating!"

"Some sparring should get it out of your system". Artemis walked over to stand behind the younger woman and gently squeezed Diana's shoulder in a gesture of comfort. "Or we could always find him and break his legs. All three of them", she offered. "What do you think, Mother? You don't think he's in trouble do you?" The younger dark haired woman frowned with worry. "I think we should reconvene tomorrow after you are more rested. We will be able to sort everything out with fresh minds". "Yes, mother" The tired princess left to retire to her rooms, giving both Artemis and Hippolyta a hug on the way out.

The raven haired queen let out a long drawn out sigh. "I knew something like this would happen." Artemis came around to sit beside her. "We should have never let her go". Green eyes narrowed in frustration, looking at nothing in particular. "I know Artemis, but what choice did we have? She won the contest fairly as was witnessed by the entire Amazon nation." "I know my queen, it was merely wishful thinking. I want to protect her just as much as you do." The redhead hesitated a moment, but decided to place her hand lightly between Hippolyta's shoulder blades. Blue eyes looked into green. They are like purest water, Artemis thought to herself as she had many times before, and found herself wanting to melt into their depths. Realizing that she had been staring, she let her hand drop from its position, lightly dragging her fingers down the back of the woman sitting next to her. An intake of breath could be heard from the raven haired beauty as the result of this touch caused a pleasant electrical emotion to well up inside of her. "Artemis", Hippolyta said softly and gently took the other woman's hand in her own. Pleasantly surprised green eyes met blue again and began to draw closer. "Yes, my queen?" The doors slammed open, startling the two women. They jerked their heads toward the back of the room. "Mother, I found someth-" Diana's words were cut off as a deathly loud explosion erupted from where she was standing. Time seemed to slow again for Artemis as she turned to shield her queen from flames and flying debris with her own body.

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	2. Chapter 2

Warrior Maidens Chapter 2

Two delicate soft orbs covered in black cloth pressed against Hippolyta's face. Artemis' arms were wrapped tightly around her head while her lower body straddled the queen's waist. Their proximity was largely ignored due to the intensity of the situation. Artemis propped herself up with one hand and looked up after she heard the debris stop falling. "Princess, are you all right!" An annoyed groan could be heard a short distance away as Diana sat up. "Yes I'm fine, Artemis. Are you and mother all right?" Artemis looked down and realized their position Hippolyta had remained quiet this whole time due to the fact that her face was still being firmly held in place against the redhead's chest with one arm. She had tried to speak before, but her words were rendered inaudible thanks to two very large breasts. Artemis quickly got up and offered her hand to the woman that was previously underneath her. "I'm sorry my queen. I didn't realize…" She felt the blood begin to rush to her head from the embarrassment, none of which showed on her actual features. Diana observed the two discreetly with a sideways glance while searching for any remnants of the device that had exploded. "It is all right Artemis, you were only trying to protect me." The queen responded with a partial smile which quickly vanished as she returned her attention to the situation at hand.

"I strongly hope that whatever this device was, it did not explode due to any special awareness of our discovering its presence," the queen stated as she watched her daughter search for anything that seemed out of place. "The implications would be grave, indeed", Hippolyta finished after a weighted pause. "I'm not even sure how it got into my things to begin with. It could have been any number of foes I have encountered since integrating into man's world", Diana responded. The princess's outer garments were in a state of complete disrepair, torn and hanging loosely from her body. She had gotten into the habit of wearing what man's world media had dubbed her 'Wonder Woman' outfit underneath her regular clothing. She easily ripped off the rest of the tattered cloth and resumed her search without giving it much of a second thought. By now several of their sisters had arrived in the room. Hippolyta and Artemis assured them of their safety and gave them impromptu assignments to be carried out. Artemis left with the two who were to help handle arranging increased protection around the island. The rest went about performing other assigned tasks. None were able to be dismissed for the evening because of the new turn of events unfortunately.

"I had some of our sisters send for the mystics. Have you had any luck yet, Diana?" Hippolyta asked. "Very little. I think most of the materials were destroyed when the device exploded." The princess held out her hand and gave her mother what she had found so far. The queen inspected the corroded, misshapen metal fragments closely. "Perhaps our sisters will be able to tell us more when they arrive". The princess nodded her head in agreement while scanning the room for more likely places to look. She determined that the mystics would have more luck than she ever would finding the little pieces of metal and ceased her search. She looked over towards her mother who was setting down the pieces of metal on the mantle.

"So… What's going on between you and Artemis, mother?", Diana asked. The queen smiled to herself at the mention of Artemis' name but returned to expressing a more neutral disposition just as quickly. "Whatever do you mean daughter?" She responded. Diana decided to let the subject drop for now. There were more important things to focus on after all. Her mother would tell her when she was ready. Or she could always badger the information out of Artemis later. She chuckled a little at the thought. "Nothing… forget I mentioned it". The Queen appeared to have forgotten as she was already absorbed in other trains of thought.

The mystics finally arrived after several more minutes spent in silent meditation. They were adorned in long robes and carried artifacts to aid them in their magical workings that even the Amazon's considered ancient. The leader of the group wore a long purple cape which did little to cover her extremely attractive features. Her long wavy red hair contrasted with the colors of her wardrobe quite nicely. The rest of her attire was pitch black and served to subdue the bright colors of her hair and cloak for an overall balanced and classy look. "We came as quickly as we could, your majesty", the head mystic proclaimed while bowing. "Your prompt arrival is appreciated as always, Circe. Thank you for coming at such short notice."

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	3. Chapter 3

Warrior Maidens

Chapter 3

Circe ordered her two blonde companions to begin their work immediately after their formal greetings. It didn't take very long for them to find what they were looking for. Or, more accurately, to have what they were looking for find them. After speaking a few ancient incantations the rest of the fragments and bits of dust flew from their hiding places and found their way into the redheaded witch's palm. As the pieces levitated, they shifted around to create as much of their original form as possible. Gaps and fissures where the metal had been warped were filled with a purple translucent energy.

"This is a modern work of man. It is neither magical nor ancient." Circe devised. "Being as such, I can not tell you completely of its nature. However, I can create an instrument that will guide you to the last person who held the weapon with mal-intent." Upon hearing this Diana grew concerned. It opened up the possibility that perhaps she had not been the intended target after all. Hippolyta had reached a similar conclusion as well, but it didn't take away from other potentially threatening scenarios and only added to them. Twin expressions of well hidden apprehension made the resemblance between the two women even more remarkable than usual.

Circe walked to the group of objects her apprentices had brought with them and began selecting suitable pieces. After her collection was complete she whispered more ancient words over each item until they merged into one magically glowing object. Droplets of sweat gathered at her brow from the intense focus and energy the task required. "Take this Princess, it will lead you to those responsible for planting the device." Circe handed Diana the newly created crystal ball. Inside was the man's world device transfixed to a broken arrow, its pieces still held together by magical energy. To test it out she moved her arm back and forth parallel to the floor. No matter which direction she held the ball, the arrow moved against it, always pointing in the same direction.

"Thank you Circe, the talents of your coven have proven invaluable once again." The queen complimented while looking around the room. She took in the few hunks of charred marble that lay shattered on the floor. It could have been much worse but thankfully her daughter has incredible reflexes. "Allow us to fix the place up, your majesty. It will take but a few hours." The blonde, brown eyed witch offered. "I am grateful for your consideration, sister." The blonde bowed and the three began their work.

With the rituals completed and more questions yet to be answered, the two Amazon royals made their way toward the invisible jet to say their goodbyes to one another before Diana departed on her next official mission. The marble architecture reflected golden light from well placed torches, leaving perfectly geometric shadows in its absence while giving the outside of the palace a safe yet exhilarating ambiance. "You have proven yourself most skilled in recent battles, my daughter. Do not allow that to sway your judgment while facing the unknown and you will surely succeed in your quest." The two women embraced for the second time that day. "I will return as soon as my mission is completed, mother. Please say goodbye to Artemis for me."

Blue fire from the jet's engine lit up the night. Hippolyta watched as the light became smaller and smaller until it finally disappeared. "She left already? Is that a good thing?" Artemis asked upon her arrival at the queen's side. Hippolyta filled her in on the events and discoveries of the past hour or so. "Now what do we do for two hours?" Artemis asked while the two walked along the shore under a starry sky and full moon. The entire island and its surrounding ocean were shrouded in sapphire hues with the exception of the acropolis which shown in a brilliant gold.

"I am sure there are some activities that we could lose ourselves in for a suitable amount of time." Hippolyta implied. The coastal wind blew through her long black hair, which was still down from their earlier sparring session. "Right, we must prepare in case of battle.", the determined redhead suggested. "It is an endeavor truly blessed that which gathers your attentions, my dear Artemis, but I think the precautions we have taken will suffice should we be attacked from outside forces." While explaining this, the queen took Artemis's hand in her own. They were no longer walking and stood facing each other, looking into each other's eyes. She lifted the redhead's wrist to her mouth and placed a gentle kiss there. Blue eyes watched green for any sign of disapproval, what she found there was quite the opposite.

Hippolyta felt finger tips caress her cheek and tilt her chin upward. Artemis stepped forward and captured the raven haired beauty's lips with her own. The queen felt the red-haired woman's tongue tease her bottom lip, begging for entrance. After a thousand years of waiting the redhead was not disappointed in the slightest.

Artemis felt herself being led to the ground. The kiss never broken, she lay partially atop Hippolyta, whose long purple cloak acted as a barrier between the sand and their bodies. She opened her eyes a fraction. Moon light bathed the queen in its silver glow highlighting perfect, breathtakingly exquisite feminine features. Her heart ached from the sight of such radiance. Her eyes slid closed once again and her limbs grew weak as she finally allowed herself this long awaited surrender to eternal love.

To be continued…


	4. Chapter 4

Warrior Maidens

Chapter 4

There they remained, lost in a sea of stars and rolling waves until the sound of sand crushing beneath hooves in the distance brought them from the blissful vastness of their experience. Hippolyta was the first of the two to take notice and broke the kiss. Artemis looked up at her blue eyed goddess as those very eyes scanned the darkness for signs of silvery movement. "What is wro-" she began asking. "Shh… Artemis, do you hear that?" The first thought to cross her mind was that it could possibly be intruders, but as the fog began to clear, she suddenly remembered the security detail she had assigned for the area earlier that night. "Great Hera, I forgot about the patrol." Artemis said quietly against the raven haired queen's cheek. Her head was turned to the side having spotted the oncoming patrol which was still far enough away. Daring another kiss, the queen then gestured for Artemis to sneak off with her into the night.

The two were able to stealthily make their way toward a cluster of tall palms and sweet-smelling hibiscus without being detected. Fitting within the dense foliage left little room for movement, not that they minded. Artemis' back rested against the trunk of one of the taller palms, her arms encircling the queen's slender waist. They could feel each other's hearts beating as their breasts pressed more tightly together after each slow inhale. Hippolyta's warm breath tickled her ear whilst the two remained motionless and cloaked by darkness. The queen could no longer resist the urge to envelope the tantalizing earlobe with her lips. The redheaded general felt her knees go weak again as gentle suction was applied. She downright near collapsed when the queen's tongue licked the curved edge of soft flesh. A sneaky hand slid down her toned abs to play at the hem of her hip-hugging pants.

It was all Artemis could do to stay quiet as the security forces she assigned passed by their hiding spot. "Do you think we will find anything tonight, Hemera?" The brunette rider asked. The two women could just barely make out their passing sister's conversation from their location. "I doubt it. Same as always.", the rider with blonde highlights responded. "Do you have any plans after our shift?", the unnamed brunette asked with a hint of hopefulness. She looked back toward the jutting palms only to be distracted by a hand touching her leg. "Well, I was reading this really good book…" Their voices finally faded as the two continued down the coastline at a slow canter.

Hippolyta waited until she felt that the two riders were far enough away before deftly maneuvering out of the tall flowering plants. Artemis followed suit, quickly catching up to her companion who was now wiping sand from various parts of her body. "I must remember to have a discussion with those two about keeping proper watch." The redhead grumbled while combing sand out of fine russet strands with her fingers. "I believe our sister Hemera may have spotted us and spared us our privacy." The queen replied as she wiped granules from the back of her thighs. "I will never hear the end of it from her." Artemis sighed grumpily, more frustrated that they were interrupted than anything. "Perhaps she did not recognize us?" The queen offered. "Perhaps", she shrugged, flipping her trademark ponytail back over her shoulder. The queen suppressed a knowing smile.

"To the palace, my queen?" Artemis asked, intertwining their fingers. "Indeed, we should make ourselves readily available in case we are needed." She lifted their clasped hands to her lips and kissed each of the redhead's knuckles. In truth, she felt a little uneasy because of their recent recklessness. What if there had been an intruder and not only the Queen, but also the leader of their military were nowhere to be found?

Artemis and Hippolyta walked calmly side by side into the palace toward the throne room. They were discussing the production of the next play, which would be Medea by Euripides, when they heard a scream come from down the hall. Their feet barely made a sound against the polished stone floors as they ran toward the source of the noise and were nearly knocked over by the blonde witch who had kindly offered to repair the throne room earlier. Hippolyta's keen eyes followed the blonde as she ran past, wondering what could have caused her to run away with such fear without stopping to explain what was going on. Artemis on the other hand rounded the corner and bounded into the room the blonde had just exited.

"Animus discidium nex!" a bolt of violet tinged lightning as thick as an arm ripped forth from Circe's hand the moment Artemis ran in. A loud crack reverberated throughout the room as it hit her square in the chest. She tried to inhale a strangled breath but her lungs spasmed painfully and she fell hard on her knees. Hippolyta's sky blue eyes widened in terror. She rushed to her falling lover, catching her before her head could smack against the cold marble floor.

"Artemis, no…" green eyes grew unfocused, struggling to stay open. She tried to touch the rapidly blurring face hovering over hers, but her limbs would not obey. All she could feel was torturous pain scorching through every living cell. "I love you, my queen" she thought, "if only I had told you sooner". She had not the strength or breath to speak. The tears sliding down her cheeks were her only means of expression now. A faint smile touched her lips, even through excruciating convulsions, for she was grateful that her last sight in this world was that of her beloved. Her body grew numb as she felt her soul being ripped away. Her love, her entire world, faded into the oncoming darkness.

Hippolyta could only stare in horror as her lover slipped away from her; forever. "Redimio!" Circe shouted, trying to catch the raven haired warrior off guard. The queen's body acted of its own accord, deflecting the binding spell with the bracelet on her right wrist. The purple blast dissipated harmlessly upon impact. The merciful void of her mind shattered as dreadful reality crashed in. She gently laid Artemis' head on the ground.

"levitas attonitus!" The witch tried again. Hippolyta looked up just in time to deflect the spell with her other wrist. "How dare you!" the queen shouted, her face contorted with pure rage. She leapt at the redheaded witch before she could even blink. Her lithe form twisted in the air as she delivered a solid round-house kick to the sorceress' face. It connected with a nauseating thud and sent her sprawling across the room.

"I will make sure you can never speak foul words of magic again!" she yelled, her voice quivering as unshed tears burned her eyes. The raven haired woman realized that the overwhelming anger and sadness was also causing her limbs to weaken and shake. She struggled to repress her fury and despair. "You should consider yourself grateful, Hippolyta, that curse was meant for you." Circe sneered. The witch's last comment forged her emotions into a frozen steel blade where her heart once was, her veins no longer contained blood, but freezing venom.

"Your jaw still functions, I see. That will be remedied soon enough." The queen responded, her eyes seared with the cold burning hatred of a thousand white suns as she charged toward the villain with a raised fist. Millennia of practicing witchcraft instead of fighting did Circe no favor in this case as she was unable to dodge the second blow. Foul blood blew away and dried on the queen's knuckles from the sheer velocity of her next punch, only to be tainted by more as the blow landed. "Bring her back or I will end you.", Hippolyta growled. If Circe wanted to speak, she could not as her face was being ruthlessly pummeled by a righteously infuriated woman. Every time she opened her mouth to curse, a fist as hard and heavy as a boulder struck her. Finally, she stopped resisting altogether as some unjustly merciful god granted her unconsciousness.

Hippolyta's chest heaved from exertion and unspent rage. Her fist remained cocked by her ear incase the seemingly lifeless woman beneath her began moving again. Thankfully for her, she didn't. Then something strange happened. The redheaded sorceress' roots began to turn a deep purple. The color seeped down every strand, replacing the former scarlet. It was probably the result of being knocked unconscious, but the queen could not imagine why, nor did she really care. She dropped the woman in disgust and rushed back to Artemis' side.

The overpowering misery engulfed her as she pressed her ear to Artemis' chest and listened for signs of life. "If you have not breath of your own and if your heart no longer beats, I will gladly give you mine in exchange, dearest Artemis." Tears splattered onto the unmoving face. She knew there could be no such exchange. The battle with Circe had lasted too long. Any possibility for resuscitation would have passed minutes ago. Still, Hippolyta could not bare to give up hope and only prayed that their timeless existence would extend beyond the grasp of time for just a little while longer. Would the fates be so unkind that after a thousand years of waiting, a meager few minutes would allow her to be taken away so easily? Hippolyta gently opened the still woman's lips and breathed into her mouth, desperately attempting to revive her departed lover. Her chest rose and fell, only to remain still. After a few more attempts she listened for a heart beat, there was none. The queen attempted several times but began sobbing so heavily that she had to stop.

Circe stirred, unnoticed...

Diana was having some trouble navigating with the magical ball Circe had given her. As soon as she flew one way, the arrow would make a sharp turn and point in the opposite direction. After twenty minutes of trying to find the exact location she finally gave up and landed at an estimated five miles away. Unfortunately the entire area was enshrouded by a turbulent dust storm that stretched for miles. She decided to patiently wait in the cockpit until the winds died down to resume her search.

To be continued...

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	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Better now than never. Diana thought to herself as the sand storm finally began to die down. a cloud of dust entered the cockpit with a hiss as she opened the hatch and gracefully leapt out. She had spent a great deal of time memorizing the geography of this new world with every opportunity she had since leaving the island. There was quite a lot to memorize but it fascinated her to no end how much larger the earth was compared to the maps she had studied from as a youth. If her memory served her correctly, she should be somewhere near the modern day Persian Gulf close to the ancient city of Babylon.

The arrow inside the globe veered slightly to the left, so she adjusted her trajectory accordingly. She ran as quickly as she could, checking the globe occasionally along the way. The sand would normally be a problem for any mere mortal, blinding them, scratching their eyes. To her it barely registered. She had near impenetrability to thank for that. The decreased effect of the blinding sand did not make visibility any better, but she kept on as fast as she could toward the unknown destination, kicking up a trail the entire way.

She could barely make out what appeared to be a wall surrounding what she hoped to be a city. The arrow became more sensitive to her movements as she drew closer. "Sveeerp" a bullet whizzed past. Her wrists lifted before she could decipher what the new threat was. Hard steel met divinely forged metal as she deflected a volley of unfriendly fire with her wrists. Fountains of sand sprang up around her feet where bullets missed and burrowed into the malleable sea of earth. A small-sized rocked joined the oncoming projectiles. 'So much for stealth' she thought. Dropping the globe, she looped her golden lasso around the oncoming missile and redirecting it toward the wall. Earth and fire exploded in every direction. She could hear the screams of men as they were blown away from their rail guns. Doubling back, she did a graceful summersault and scooped up the glass sphere once again.

Diana quickly ran toward the new opening in the wall only to be accompanied by gun fire yet again. Only this time it appeared to be coming from behind her and not directed at her. Whoever the new arrivals were, they appeared to be on her side and she was always glad for some extra cover.

Circe's head pounded with a vengeance as she came to, yet she knew better than to make even the slightest sound. With each sob the queen let out, the sorceress' splitting headache grew that much worse. She bit back the urge to groan, though she doubted Hippolyta would have heard her regardless. "Levitas attonitus", Circe said weakly while pointing at the queen's back. A thin strip of pure lightening zigzagged through the air, hitting the mourning warrior with the crackling energy. The charge traveled through Hippolyta's body and into Artemis' freshly dead corpse. As one was stunned asleep, the other was shocked alive.

Darkness surrounded Artemis as she walked toward the brilliantly glowing light at the end of the tunnel. The closer she got, the more she could feel its warmth and love. It felt like she was walking toward a home she didn't know she had. Suddenly the light began to grow further away, and with it the went the warmth, leaving her in the cold depressing void as her soul was dragged away, once again.

Sparks flashed on silver as bullets were redirected back at her opponents. She grabbed the gun of her nearest foe with one hand, bending the nozzle upward while grabbing the cloth of his jacket with the other, and tossed him effortlessly. He slammed head first into the chest of his compatriot with enough power that they both went flying into the wall behind them. She quickly got annoyed at having to pick up the globe every time she wanted to use both hands to fight so she ducked out of combat momentarily to solve the problem. Rounding a corner, she kicked another enemy in the gut. He skidded in the dirt for a good ten feet before his head hit the building behind him, knocking him out. Bullets ate away at the stucco brick behind her as she quickly tied her lasso around the globe several times.

If her guess was right, the magical orb-turned-mace would hold up to the abuse she was about to put it through. Diana twirled her golden lasso at her right side. More fire came her way. She hooked the crook of her arm over the spinning lasso, sending the heavy ball sailing toward the oncoming fire while simultaneously deflecting bullets with the same wrist. It ricocheted off of the machine gun, tipping it up and smacking it's wielder in the face. She pulled back fiercely and did the same to an opponent running at her from behind. Tugging at the lasso again she swung it in an arc while hopping over it, taking out five more opponents by the legs. Fire rained down at her from a one of the balconies above. Friendly fire resounded from her left as the sniper was shot down.

"We've got it from here, Wonder Woman.", a blonde woman in an American military uniform shouted over the sounds of combat. A headset was tossed in her direction. Diana quickly put on the ear piece and ran further into the city. "Let me know if you need back up, I'm going further in" she responded.

To be continued...


	6. Chapter 6

As the light moved further and further away, Artemis began to realize that she was never in a tunnel at all. Soon the light was nothing but a speck in vast darkness filled with other sparkling lights. It was like she was in an sea of distant stars. She had no concept of up or down, left or right as her spirit floated in the endless abyss. Artemis had no idea that she _was _in fact moving, at the speed of light toward yet another destination. Intense red light illuminated her arms and legs from behind until she was completely consumed by a fiery glow and finally; blinked into nothingness.

Hippolyta slowly returned to awareness after the stun effect of Circe's last spell wore off. The first thing she noticed was the rise and fall of the chest that lay beneath her head and the warmth that accompanied it. A moment of realization hit her and she sat up hurriedly. Her head swam, but she ignored it. "Artemis... you are alive." the queen whispered under her breath.

"Indeed it is a miracle. Though I would not get your hopes up, Hippolyta. While her body is alive, her soul is far from present. She will not be waking up any time soon. She most likely never will."

The queen tried to move her hands. They were bound behind her back, by some sort of magic blob. She tried to wiggle her fingers and was unable to move them. "What did you do to her?", The queen demanded.

"Technically, I killed her and then brought her back to life. The latter being an accident. No matter, I am sure I will find a good use for her body, even in this state." Circe responded. The witch had a faraway look in her eyes as though pondering the possibilities as she sat upon her dark throne. Only her legs were clearly visible from the shadows. The entire throne room seemed to have been converted into a dark magic lair.

Hippolyta did not like the tone of witch's voice in the slightest. She decided that the best course of action for now would be to keep Circe talking until help arrived. "You are not an Amazon. Why are you here?" The queen asked. She really hated being civil to this villain but it was her only option. She would have to wait until the blond that ran past earlier could summon help.

"Is it really that obvious? Let me guess, the hair gave it away?" When Hippolyta didn't respond, Circe decided to continue. "I have been around since a time before even the Amazons. While your nation was hidden from existence, I have watched this world become the vile place that it is today. The problems of the past are the problems of the present. There are countries where women have no rights at all. They are beaten, raped, exploited and murdered at the hands of men on a daily basis all over the world." Hippolyta's eyes widened.

"Do not look so surprised, my dear. Surely you know better than anyone the true nature of man. It is why you chose to hide your people to begin with is it not?" Circe leaned forward from the shadows and rose an eyebrow. "I can only wonder what the world would be like now if your people had chosen to stay and fight throughout the ages instead of removing yourselves from reality." the witch tapped her chin in mock reflection.

"What is it you intend to do about this problem that thousands of years of civil evolution have not yet been able to accomplish?" Hippolyta asked, refusing to take the witches bait for an argument.

A smirk played at Circe's lips. "Kill some men, turn others into the beasts they truly are. I am not _that _hard to please really. As long as the job gets done and all guilty parties are extinguished." Circe raised the other perfectly sculpted violet eyebrow and tilted her head slightly back to look down her nose even further at Hippolyta if that was at all possible. "I was hoping that we could come to an agreement. Your Amazons would handle the brawn aspect while I take care of the rest. I am sure your sisters would jump at the chance mete out justice to the vilest men in the world." Her smirk turned into a full blown evil smile.

Diana swiftly turned left to accommodate the globe's arrow direction, hoping that the alley wouldn't suddenly wind in another direction again. She seemed to have passed the most of the shooters when she crossed into the inner part of the small city and was using the labyrinth of walls and deserted stalls to hide her movement from the enemy. She could just fly over the buildings but she didn't want to try her luck blocking and dodging that many bullets. The communication device beeped at Diana's ear. "Wonder Woman, do you copy?" came the official and fatigued sounding voice of the female officer from earlier.

"I hear you loud and clear", the raven haired warrior was still very much concentrating on the globe and finding the right destination. "What do I call you?"

"Major Hynde - but that's not important right now -" Diana could hear some rustling in the background and Major Hynde's muffled barking of orders over gun shots through the communications device. "According to our Intel, the agents we are trying to rescue are close to your current location. Would you do us a colossal favor and rescue them for us? They are pressing us pretty hard and we can't advance, now that they know we are here, we can't waste another minute."

The raven haired warrior knew what the Major was implying but didn't want to put into words. "What does your information tell us about location?" Diana looked at the glass sphere in her palm, fully expecting the answer already. She had already deduced that she and the team of soldiers had a common mission in this, she just didn't know how much longer using the globe would take. She would rather not waste time triangulating the correct location or going the even longer rout by knocking down every door and searching every building the arrow pointed her at.

"A long, two story building, about one hundred and fifty feet north west of your location, just on the other side of the wall you are behind now. The outside has four heavily armed guards." The Major responded.

"Thank you, Major." Diana said and looked down at the globe. She had been correct and fortunate in saving time. She tucked the globe and lasso back into her belt, got into a lowered running stance and took off westward. She had built up quite a lot of speed a short distance which she utilized by kicking off to the north suddenly and propelling herself fist first through the stucco covered cinder block wall.

Shards of brick exploded in every direction. A large chunk flew at one of the guards by the door. With a sickening crack, he collapsed to the ground. Diana didn't waste the element of surprise. The second guard barely had time to blink before she had slipped behind him, put one arm around his middle and one arm around his neck, knocking him out in three seconds flat. Noting the growing spread of blood puddling around the first guard's head, she bent down to do a quick pulse check. He was alive. With a small grunt she hefted one of the guards over her shoulder and carried the other at her waist as if they weighed next to nothing and walked around the eastern side of the building to wait for the other two guards to show up. Diana didn't like the idea of letting a person bleed to death in such a helpless state, so after setting them both down gently, she tore off a piece of his uniform and made a quick bandage around the bleeding fellows wound.

As she was tying the final knot the other two guards came blazing out from the opposite side of the long building yelling in foreign words. The skinny one pointed towards the hole in the wall and they both ran towards it, just as Diana expected they would. When they had almost reached the hole in the wall, she ran stealthily behind them, knocking the burly one out with a solid punch to the face. The skinny one managed to get a single shot off by the time the raven haired Amazon was on him, she blocked it effortlessly and soon he too was on the ground with his friend.

The shot must have alerted the occupants inside of the building because they came pouring out of every door, hallway and window like bees from a disturbed hive. Soon, Diana was faced with at least two hundred men in loose fitting sand colored garb, all of which were armed to the teeth.

Only one word came to Diana's mind.

"Crap"


End file.
